Northampton Crown Court Sentencing Results

On the evening of October 7, 2024, CCTV operators spotted a vulnerable woman being assaulted in a car park in Kettering town centre and alerted police. Officers found Florin Bogatu standing over the victim and arrested him on suspicion of rape. A CCTV timeline showed Bogatu, who did not know the woman, approached her, followed her, and led her to the car park where he tried to rape her, orally raped her and further sexually assaulted her.

Ryan Sutton, aged 24 from Worcester, met the 10-year-old victim on Snapchat in March 2023. He groomed the victim with flattery, offers to spend money, and sexual messages, exchanging photographs. Between 11 and 23 April 2023, they spoke on Facetime 225 times. On 23 April 2023, Sutton travelled from Worcestershire to Finedon to meet the victim, where he raped and sexually assaulted her in woodland. He fled when spotted but was arrested while trying to leave by car; condoms were found in his bag. The victim disclosed the abuse three months later, supported by forensic evidence. Sutton showed no remorse initially and denied wrongdoing despite evidence.

Tosin Dada was convicted with another defendant of three counts of rape involving a 17-year-old girl in Northampton in March 2022. He denied the allegations and claimed the sexual activity was consensual, but was found guilty after a nine-day trial.

Solomon Ibukun Adebiyi was convicted with another defendant of three counts of rape involving a 17-year-old girl in Northampton in March 2022. He denied the allegations and claimed the sexual activity was consensual, but was found guilty after a nine-day trial.

Paul Knight strangled the victim to death at their home on Donnington Road in Burton Latimer, Northamptonshire, on June 13, 2023, while their young daughters slept upstairs. The murder occurred amid a crumbling marriage where the victim had expressed her desire for a divorce and was searching for new properties. Knight, who had a serious cocaine addiction causing financial difficulties, viewed pornography before and after the attack and snorted cocaine. The next morning, he left a suicide note admitting to the killing due to his addiction, attempted to end his own life, and crashed his car in a McDonald's car park. Police discovered the victim's body during a welfare check.

Louis De Zoysa shot and killed Metropolitan Police Sergeant Matt Ratana in a holding cell at Croydon's Windmill Road custody centre on September 25, 2020. While handcuffed, he retrieved a concealed .41-calibre revolver and fired multiple shots, hitting Sgt Ratana in the chest and thigh, leading to his death. De Zoysa also sustained injuries from his own gunfire. He was arrested earlier that day in Norbury and had bullets and cannabis on his person.

In the early hours of October 11, 2020, a woman was relaxing in the garden with her housemates after a long shift. Among the guests was Nicu Botnari, an acquaintance from Northampton’s Headlands area. After the woman went to bed, she was horrified to find Botnari on top of her, committing rape. He fled the house shortly after, but the victim bravely reported the attack to the police.

Mark Darren Mingard, 55, of Oundle, was found guilty of five child sex offences including rape committed over a seven-year period between 2015 and 2021. Police were alerted after one of the children told a friend, which led to a chain of events exposing his crimes and resulting in his arrest.

Samuel Field, a paranoid cannabis user, tortured his 93-year-old close friend the victim for more than 24 hours by punching, kicking, stamping on and strangling him. The attack occurred at Field's home in Desborough, Northamptonshire, in September 2024. Field falsely believed the victim had betrayed him and interrogated him while making voice recordings about a conspiracy. The victim was left motionless and died three months later from pneumonia caused by brain injuries.

Kieran Blanchfield raped a woman in an Ipswich hotel on June 28, 2025. He verbally abused her and continued the assault despite being told to stop. He was arrested shortly after and charged with one count of rape and two counts of assault.

Bishan Shiekh approached a vulnerable woman inside a property in Northampton and attempted to rape her. She managed to get away and reported the offence to Northamptonshire Police. Shiekh was arrested and charged with one count of attempted rape. The trial began on 28 April 2026 at Northampton Crown Court and lasted five days, after which the jury found him guilty.

Adrian Mark Westley, then deputy manager of two Daventry charity homes for vulnerable teenagers, raped and indecently assaulted two female residents between 1994 and 1995. The offences came to light in August 2016 when one victim reported to Northamptonshire Police. A second victim was identified during the investigation. At trial, the court heard from victims, witnesses, and counsellors about the lifelong physical and psychological harm caused by the abuse. Westley denied all charges but was convicted of nine counts including rape and indecent assault.